duka Headquarters | KUP - ARCH Architekten architetti

The South Tyrolean Duka AG began its corporate history around 40 years ago as a one-man operation in a garage. To date, the shower enclosure manufacturer has grown into a 300-employee family business that operates on a European level and was most recently spread across four locations in the region. In 2016, the company management decided to consolidate the production, office, warehouse and showroom areas in one place and found a conveniently located site in the industrial estate of Brixen, right next to the railway line, Brenner motorway and state road. Due to the local topography, the traffic arteries running from north to south all pass within sight of the building.

In this respect, the shower enclosure manufacturer's building was to be something visually special and package the brand's values in contemporary architecture. The Brixen office KUP-ARCH was commissioned with the planning, which also designed the interior in cooperation with the architect Stephan Prossliner and the interior design office Bea Interiors. The monolithic building, which essentially consists of an insulated reinforced concrete structure, accommodates the functional areas of production, storage, showroom, training rooms, as well as office and administration. The production halls with an area of 32,500 m² extend from the ground floor to the ground floor and are accessed via separate entrances in the west.

The entrance for customers and visitors is on the south-west side, and the showroom, called the "Dukaversum", has 7,400 m² of space. This also includes a training area where customers can try out assembling and installing the shower enclosures. These rooms are arranged around an inner courtyard. To the north of the Dukaversum is the office wing. The offices are also grouped around several small atriums and a larger, so-called staff courtyard, which also serves as a recreation room. In addition to the office wing, 20 per cent of the area has been kept free as a space reserve for possible future expansions.

A sculpturally designed staircase is cut into the façade. It leads directly to the showroom on the first floor. The façade consists of a perforated metal skin, which is separated from the smooth, light-coloured base zone. Vertical strips of polished stainless steel are inserted as a decorative element in the recesses of the trapezoidal sheets. They are intended to remind us of water running off wet surfaces - the poetry of showering.